“We remain committed to national drug policies as part of national health policies. The national drug policy process can and should engage the public sector, professional bodies, the private sector, consumers, academics, and other concerned partners. Together they can develop a common vision and plan of action.”

Director-General Dr Gro Harlem Brundtland, address to Executive Board Ad Hoc Working Group on the Revised Drug Strategy, October 1998.²⁵

The four strategic objectives outlined in Chapter 2 provide the framework for WHO medicines work for 2000 - 2003: (1) implementation and monitoring of national drug policies; (2) equitable availability and affordability of essential drugs, especially for diseases of poverty; (3) quality, safety and efficacy of all drugs; and (4) rational use of drugs. Each of these four objectives contains between two and four specific components. Within each component, expected outcomes for 2000-2003 have been defined. ²⁷

The country progress indicators included in each component description provide a quantitative measure for the 1999 status of the component, and a target to be achieved for that component by 2003. The selected indicators and targets strike a realistic balance between data needed for a meaningful assessment of progress in an area of activity, and what is actually measurable in most settings. Most of the progress indicators used are based on routinely reported information and information gathered for the four-yearly World Drug Situation survey. A small number of progress indicators requiring field surveys have also been included. Understandably, these latter indicators will be used only in those countries which benefit from comprehensive WHO programme support in essential drugs and medicines policy (see Chapter 4).

Chapter 6 outlines how the progress indicators will be used to measure the impact of WHO medicines work during 2000 - 2003.